Combining of steels



(No Model.)

' 2 She tsF-Sheet 1. J. J. WILLIAMSON.

OOMBINING 0P sTEELs.

"Patented Apr; 1, 1884.

'IfTg 1 2 sheets-Shea 2.

OOMBIiVING 0P STEELS.

Patented Apr.;1,1884.

WITNESSES various steels of which the ingot or mass is NIT COMBI NiNG OF STEELS.

SPECIFICATION forming partof Letters Patent No. 295,965, dated April 1, 1884:.

Application filed July 22, 1882. (No model.)

To all whom, it may co ncern:

Be it known that 1. JOHN J. WILLIAMsoN,of

have invented a new and useful Improvement in the Combining of Steels; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and

exact description thereof.

My invention consists in the modes and manners of combining two or more different qualities of steel of varying carbon degree of hardness, ductility, strength, and fusibility in one and the same mass, securing the relative position, perfectsoundness, freedom from porosity, complete homogeneity, and certain union of the ductility, non-liability to sudden fracture,

with the invaluable property of welding and forging at high heatscan be treated in ordirequisites desired in. one and the same mass,

block, or barsuch as ability to be forged at any heat, welded with ease and safety, to receivc and maintain temper, stiffness, strength to great degree,with the safe factor of ductility,which represents the non-liability to fracture under either sudden or continued concussion or vibratory strains. The outer section or portion of the ingot, block, or mass of the first instance iscomposed of the quality of metal known as mild steel, or, otherwise, ingot iron, of such grade as will enableit to withstand the heats only by which it can be welded, and the subsequent processes of manipulation and reduction on forging either. by rolls, hammer,or any process usual in working malleable metal of this nature. lBy preference, I would choose for such outer section or envelope of the ingot or mass the mild steel made by the process known as the dephosphorizing process, for the reasons that it can be produced more cheaply, and is believed to have greater fluidity than mild steels made by other processes at the present time.

Yet I do not confine myself to the use of.

mild steel produced by said dephosphorizing process alone, but claim as well the use of said quality of mild metal made by the Bessemer process proper or by the Siemens- .Martin, or other open-hearth or pneumatic process which will produce the desired resultsviz., the ability to weld in fusion and sustain forging and treatment at high heats, an ample test being .the ability of the metal to sustain without injury the heats and treatment necessary to perfectits own homogenity.

There are various modes and details of utilizing my invention, which areproperly apart of it, whereby I am enabled to produce the results, sought in the easiest, most reliable, and economical manner, securing commercial success and enhancing the benefits from the invention to the public.

By one of my methods I first cast a hollow ingot of mild steel of any form, dimensions, and thickness of mass, with one end wholly or partially closed, the other being open to enable its being filled either with molten steel or steel in scrap or ingot or bloom, or by using bothsolidand fluid steelsa combination of the two methods. By another method of procedure, which has its advantages, a compound ingot or mass of varying qualities of steel can be made equally well with the mode first described, first casting the ingot block or mass which is designed to form the center of the final mass of such form, dimensions, and quality of metal as desired, and at any subsequent time this first or center ingot can be placed within an ordinary mold suitable for the pur' pose, and the second quality of metal poured to it. If desired, the first or center ingot can be placed within the mold for ingot N0. 2 in gest.

such manner that thesteel poured to it will envelop it completely or not, as wished. The prior ingot in any case may or may not be placed in the center of the mold for the following ingot, as the result to be gained may sug- In the one case the following metal will be equally distributed from a center line and in the other it will not beas, for instance, an ingot or mass of two steels being cast from which railroad-rails are to manufactured, the center ingot being of hard steel set to one side of the center of the mold, the mild steel poured to it enveloping it but slightly on one side and heavily upon the other. The side of the ingot where the mild steel is of thelesser section represents in the finished article the head of the rail and the thick side of mild steel the base, thus securing practically a safe rail of great endurance. I

The qualities, quantities, and relative positions of the various steels used in filling the hollow ingot of mild steel, to be determined by the desire to produce a given result: Closing the opening in the hollow ingot ofmild steel by any suitable means, the whole mass is charged into a heatingfurnace, and its temperature raised to the point of welding, when it is drawn and sent to the rolls or other appliances for manipulation and forging.

The treatment of the ingot or mass to the welding-heat necessary to cure its defects and insure soundness subsequent to its formation by casting and working it at such high temperatures secures, first, the perfect freedom from porosity; second, soundness of the mass in its entirety; third, removing the lines be tween contiguous steels and merging the varying qualities to such extent that there no 1011-.

ger remains a distinctiveness of quality at their junction. It is only by this subsequent treatment of the mass to the high welding tempera ture and the manipulation of it at that heat that a sound article can be produced from com pound or composite steels. This process of casting steel upon steel can be followed or repeated in the formation of an ingot or mass as often as wished, at the convenience of the manufacturer; These ingots or masses of single or compound steels can be placed in the mold for the final operation of casting round about. them the envelope of mild steel, they being so situated and sustained within the mold that the molten mild steel, in pouring, incloses the mass at base and top, so that no portion of the inner mass may be presented to the flame when reheating or to the oxidizing and destructive effects of exposure when at high temperatures.

Ingots or masses of composite steels under my invention can be produced with facility either wholly or partially tubular in form, of such size, shape, and formation as required, by first inserting a tube of mild steel, either cast or welded, up as a core in the mold wherein the first or center ingot is to be cast, then pouring the molten metal for the first ingot to any subsequent time, it being manifest that the article can be produced more cheaply and readily by using the steel-producing plant up on one quality at a timethat is, it would be more expensive to operate two sections of the producing-plant with a view of casting from both simultaneously metals of different qualities into the same ingot or mass. Not that I disclaim the mode of casting simultaneously,

or nearly so, to produce the mass or ingot to be afterward submitted to the treatment of welding or re-fusing, but yet I do notthink any necessity exists for such action, as it will not produce better, if equally good, results in the manufactured article, but will largely enhance the cost, producing an unsound article at the best, which unsoundness cannot be wholly removed by the subsequent treatment at the high welding temperatures because of the impurities and deleterious substances confined within the metals. I Whennecessary, plates or slabs. of mild steel, previously prepared by any process of reduction,

can be used for the construction of the mold for receiving the steels, either in fluid. or solid form' and subsequent treatments. The aperture in such built-up mold must be closed so as to protect the high metals of the interior by metal stopper or cover capable of withstanding the necessary high heats. Sections of mild steel, either in plates, slab, or other form, may be used to cover an ingot or mass of steel already made, protecting the high metal during the subsequent treatment, and in all instances becominga component part of the mass itself.

By my invention and mode of treatment, when it is desired to produce a perfect result from the combining of two or more qualities of steel, the surfaces of contact of any or all of the ingots, blocks, or masses, or sections thereof, should be freed from the presenceof all impurities-as sand, scale, or slagso that a free metallic surface is presented for union to the following metal. This will apply in all cases when a perfect result is to be obtained. The presence of sand, scale, or any deleterious substance confined within the metal will produce a weak spot or section which cannot be entirely overcome by subsequent working of the metal. 7

The cleansing process as a part of my invention is not an absolute requisite to the success of the process in all cases, for in many in- "stances the small amount of dirt confined would not seriously interfere with the practical results, yet for .preciseness of metal, certain ability of all sections to do equal work, the deleterious substances must be removed, preferably by acid baths, use of scraper, wire brush, or other means to produce the result of anunalloyed metallic surface.

By my invention, the ingots, blocks, or masses of composite steels may be formed in casting of such section, regular or irregular, as required, or

with re-enforced portions, either in all the dif ferent sections of steels, or in any one of the number composing the n1assas, for instance, in casting ingots, blocks, or masses for large the varioussteels composing themass. This is particularly appllcable to the manufacture of ordnance.

, My invention contemplates the manufacture y and production of compound or composite.

steels of two or more qualities, of any form I. and dimension, either solid, tubular, or par tially so, with enlarged or reduced sections the various sections formed bycasting, using.

by preference the-prior sections in a cold state,

when casting another section to them any cracking or imperfections arising from the shrinkage of the newly-poured metal upon a solid body, subsequently rectified by the process. of welding, fusing, and manipulation while in such state of high heat, the various sections of the final ingot or mass to be cast,

cleansed, and prepared for the subsequent operation at the convenience of the.producer,

and by heating the mass entire, or in section,

to the welding-heat of the exterior of mild steel, thereby securing the fusion or semifusion of the mass of steels composing the ingot, slab, or bloom, producing soundness of the product in its entirety, the fusing of the different qualities together, and the perfect r i i and complete union of the same.

It is a pretty-well known fact that steel which is high in. carbon has a fusingpoint which is lower than steel which is less high in carbon; or, in other words, that high steel is more fusible thanilow steel. It is also awellknown fact that in the presence of atmosphere at the temperature of fusion carbon tends to burn out from the steel, and more rapidly from.

high steel at its low-fusing temperaturethan from low steel at its high-fusing temperature. It is also a fact that the welding temperature of high steel is very close to its fusing-point, and that the burning-point of high steel in the presence of atmosphere is at or about perhaps a little lower than its welding-point. It is therefore necessary to completely cover the surfaces which would otherwise beexposed to the atmosphere with the mild steel, and in case of tubular articles or hollow articles they i should be surfaced with mild steel on both sirable to give it toughness and bring out all the best qualities of the metal. This can only be done while its surface is protected.

The formation of an ingot of two or more qualities of steel arranged in layers is not of itself novel; but the formation of an ingot having on every side mild steel and on its interior higher steel, and then working that ingot under the hammer or in the rolls at a weldingheat, so to produce from the extreme exterior of the metal to the point of highest carbonization a gradual and comparatively uniform gradation of points of carbon is, so far as known, entirely novel. From these considerations it will be seen that at the weldingheat of the mild enveloping steel the high steel in the interior of the ingot will necessarily be in a state of fusion, so that the high steel is rolled or hammered while fused, and receiving this work the porosity of the metal is necessarily entirely removed. Some of its carbon diffuses which the more notable maybe mentioned:

ordnance and projectiles therefor, gun carriages, armor, ship, boiler, and girder plate, railroad and street-road rails, frogs and switchplates, shapes and bars for structural purposes, shafts and axles, both tubular and solid, tubes cast or welded, cylinders for hydraulic and steam purposes, materials for construction of enginesand cars, wire, tires for engine and car wheels, sheets, bars, and shapes for general or special use.

In the drawings, Figurel represents in end elevation and section a composite steel plate made by my process, in which O is the outer envelope of mild steel and B the inner body of steel of higher carbon. Fig. 2 is a side eleva tion and section of the plate in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 represents a composite steel plate consisting of steels of three carbons -namely, the outer enveloping steel, 0, the second steel, B, and the third steel, A. The inner steels may have any extent of carbon, and may be arranged in relation to each other as desired. Fig. 4 represents in horizontal section, and Fig. 5 in crosssection, a portion of a breech-loading gun made of composite steels, in which the portions 0 are of mild steel and the portions D E of steels of higher carbon. Preferably,'the steel D is of higher carbon than steel E. Fig. 4 also illustrates the reenforcing referred to in the specification by increasing the relative thickness of the various carbon steels.

I am aware thatLetters Patent No. 188,458, dated March 11,1871, No. 213,256, dated April too casting from converters or hearths of two or more different qualities of steel in a manner that shall leave the steel of high and hard quality enveloped in the steel of low or soft quality; second manipulation, forging, rolling,

1, 1879, and British Letters Patent N 0. 1,028, dated March 9, 187 7 and No. 5,014, dated June 7, 1879, describe certain methods of forming and Working composite steels; but I consider that they do not embrace the spirit of my in- I vention. I or working this composite ingot at the Weld- Having thus fully described my invention, I I ing-heat of the mild steel,isubstantially as and Letters Patent for the purposes described.

J N O. J WILLIAMSON.

claim and desire to secure by of the United States As a process for the manufacture of steel shapes, the two following manipulations: first manipulation, the formation of the ingot by WVitnesses:

F. F. RAYMOND, 2d, WILLARD O. FOGG. 

